New study provides food carbon footprint pecking order

1 November 2016 10:46

Researchers have compiled the first comprehensive carbon footprint league table for fresh food so chefs, caterers and everyday foodies can cook meals without cooking the planet.

The greenhouse gas emissions dataset by researchers at Lancaster University and RMIT University and will help consumers and catering firms calculate the environmental impact of the fresh food they eat and the menus they serve.

The new research suggests altering our eating habits for the good of the environment.

Grains, fruit and vegetables were found to have the lowest impact, followed by nuts and pulses. Chicken and pork (non-ruminant meat) had a medium impact.

Fish also had a medium impact on average. However, results between species varied significantly. Meat from beef and lamb (ruminant animals with multiple guts) had the highest impact.

The authors had worked with a residential age care organisation to develop a sustainability strategy to help reduce their green house gas emissions.

A key finding was that the food served to residents contributed to a large portion of the environmental impact.

While they were aware of various strategies that could reduce this impact (such as having less red meat), to estimate the impact of a revised menu with some credibility was exceptionally difficult as the information was so dispersed.

This started their attempt to understand more clearly the global warming potential of differing foods.

The aim of the research was to develop a dataset to support consumers and catering organisations calculate the impact of their ingredients and menus.

The paper, a systematic review of greenhouse gas emissions for different fresh food categories, is published in the Journal of Cleaner Production.